2017.09.05 Volleyball: Riverside @ Rock Ridge

Ashburn, VA (September 5, 2017) – Entering this match, the Riverside Rams and the host Rock Ridge Phoenix were both still working to find their identities. The Rams were 2-3 and the Phoenix was 1-2. The winning team would get back to even in the standings and would earn a fresh start heading into the heart of the season.

Given that they had already played each other once, with Rock Ridge winning that one 3-2, the Phoenix may have been slightly more confident. And it showed in the first set as the home team won fairly easily, 25-18.

But Riverside fought back. Hard. After dropping the second set, 26-24, they won the third set by the biggest margin of the evening, 25-15. Trailing two games to one, the momentum clearly was on the visiting side in the fourth set.

The two teams traded the lead multiple times, but Rock Ridge had just enough to escape that set, 26-24, and win the match, 3-1.

The match score might not indicate it, but this one was as close as it gets. When you add up all the points each team scored--and if you took it as one game only--the Phoenix would still win. But the score would have been 91-90, a difference of a single point.

Final score: Rock Ridge 3 - Riverside 1.

Players who could be clearly identified by jersey number are listed in the links below. Additional photos of these and other players may be found by reviewing the full gallery.